We Compared The Best Music Streaming Services To See Which One's Worth The Money For Indian Users

It's 2019, so it's safe to assume that a majority of smartphone users have started using a music streaming service instead of downloading songs online illegally for free and storing them on their devices. Well, if you haven't already then we highly suggest that you start using a music streaming service.

There are a ton of options out there and most of them won't break your bank. And thanks to the widespread availability of mobile data, you can stream them on the go without having to load them on your device, or letting them eat all your storage.

But because of the overwhelming amount of options out there, you might have some trouble selecting the right service for you. Don't worry! We did the hard work, so you don't have to go through the pain of checking out each of them for yourself.

Here's a comprehensive comparison of all the best music streaming service to help you find out the one that's worth your money

Note: For this comparison, we'll be comparing all the streaming services which we think are the best ones in India. We'll be comparing JioSaavn, Spotify, Apple Music, Gaana, YouTube Music and Amazon Prime Music them based on 4 main criteria - music selection, UI, features, and pricing.

Music Selection

It's essential to know the kind of music you'll be able to listen on a particular service before digging deep into the other things like the UI and features. So we thought it's best if we start with this. So when it comes to music selection, YouTube Music is by far the best option. YouTube Music not only brings the catalog of Google Play Music, but it also has the power of, you know, YouTube!

YouTube, as we all know, has all kinds of music. Be it Bollywood, Western or some regional language music, YouTube has it all. Add Google Play Music's vast library of over 30 million songs, you have a winner right there. YouTube Music is also great for listening to live performances, music covers, etc.

The next in line would be JioSaavn and Gaana. Both of these platforms also have plenty of music to choose from. In fact, if you're into music from regional artists in languages like Tamil, Telugu, Punjabi, etc. then you're probably using them. Amazon Prime Music and Apple Music are also good, but they definitely don't have everything and there are times when you'll have trouble finding the music that you're looking for.

As for Spotify, well, let's just say that Spotify is the last in the list and it's because they still need to figure out some licenses. Yes, Spotify also has a lot of Bollywood music and other regional artists but it's still not a one-stop solution for everything.

Winner: YouTube Music

User Experience

A music streaming app, or any app for that matter, has to be easy-to-use and must have all the essential features. Yes, the user experience is quite subjective, but we'll still try our best to list out all the features and tell you which ones do we like the best.

Spotify may lack a good music catalog in India. But it's one of the best music streaming apps we've used and nothing even comes close. It's got nice aesthetics and everything is presented very neatly. Things like finding your favorite playlist, playback control, settings, etc. won't be an issue at all. It's an enjoyable experience overall.

Apple Music also has a very good UI. Again, everything is very presented very neatly and you'll not have any trouble navigating through the menus. YouTube Music has to be the next one in line when it comes to a neat and clutter-free UI. Services like Gaana and JioSaavn also have a good UI, but let's just say they're not our favorites as it can be a little confusing at times to navigate and find all the options that are on offer. Lastly, we have Amazon Prime Music, which, well, still has a very dated look for an app in 2019.

Winner: Spotify

Features

It's not just about the UI all the time. We believe an app must have all the essential features as well in order for it to be worth recommending. And as far as the features are concerned, Spotify again tops the list. Just being able to listen to your music on almost any platform of choice itself makes it the winner. Seriously, tell us an app that lets you pause the music on your phone and continue listening to it on, say, your TV from right where you left it.

That, and the addition of other features like collaborative playlists, private listening mode, share music on platforms like Instagram via stories, etc. make it a winner. BTW, did we tell you that it is one of the most powerful algorithms that give you perfect recommendations? Yes, that's a major win as well.

JioSaavn and Gaana also have a long list of features. Both platforms have a ton of exclusive content, music videos, podcasts, etc. You also get things like Dark Mode, which has sort of become a necessity in today's date. YouTube Music also as a ton of features, but the most important one has got to be the fact that it already knows what you'd like to listen to, thanks to the power of YouTube.

Apple Music also stands out with all the latest set of features and especially by offering things like Siri and Apple Watch support. As of Amazon Prime Music, again, it feels very old and lacks any distinguishing feature apart from Alexa support.

Winner: Spotify

Audio Quality

This particular feature is quite underrated. It's hard to imagine that a lot of people don't care about the audio quality here in India. It's crazy how people don't know the difference of streaming music at 320kbps as compared to say, 96kbps. The difference is very much noticeable especially when you're using quality equipment for listening to your music.

In India, only Spotify, Gaana and JioSaavn offer 320kbps support. All the other services like YouTube Music, Apple Music, and Amazon Prime Music max out at 256kbps. BTW, bitrate is not limited to just 320kbps. International music streaming services like Tidal support bitrate upwards of 1,000kbps. That's what you need to listen for the best experience.

Pricing

Alright! Now that you know pretty much everything about these music streaming services, it's time to know which one's the best for your wallet. Before we discuss the pricing, it's important to note that most of the streaming services, that we've mentioned, have a free version that'll let you stream music for absolutely no cost whatsoever. Of course, you won't be able to use all the features, but it's good to know that you don't necessarily have to spend to listen to music.

Spotify is probably the best when it comes to free version. You can listen to the music of your choice without having to pay for anything. You'll have to put up ads and you won't be able to save music offline. However, Apple Music and Amazon Prime Music, on the other hand, don't offer a free version. You can try out their service for free for a limited time, but after that, you'll be forced to pay in order to use.

Speaking of pricing, JioSaavn, Gaana and YouTube Music are the most affordable options in India. They have a monthly subscription plan that costs Rs 99. In fact, you can get the annual subscription of JioSaavn and Gaana for just Rs 299, which is incredibly affordable. Spotify's monthly subscription is priced at Rs 199 and it goes all the way up to Rs 1,189 for a year.

Apple Music's monthly subscription costs Rs 120 and an annual subscription costs Rs 1,200. Amazon Prime Music, on the other hand, will cost you Rs 129 a month and Rs 999 a year. That, however, also includes Amazon's Prime membership which also includes faster Amazon delivery and Prime Video subscription. Obviously, Amazon's plan is a better deal here out of the bunch, but none of them are really that expensive given the features that they offer.

The Final Say

Well, that concludes our comprehensive comparison of the best music streaming services that are available in India. As you can see, Spotify has a lot going for it, but then it lacks certain music. Gaana and JioSaavn are also really good options given the features that they offer for the price. It's hard to spell out an outright winner here, so it's best if you go through the comparison and choose the one that suits you best.